Chasing DX
The term "DX" is an acryonym for long distance or, if you will, foriegn contacts. One of the most prestigous of ham radio awards is the coveted DX Century Club award. This is a very difficult award to achieve, and in most cases, requires several years to attain. For one to be issued this award, undisputed proof must be submitted to A.R.R.L. headquarters in Newington, CT. Checks are made to assure that all requirements for a valid contact are met and there are no alterations made to the original "proof" documentation. At least 100 countries must be "confirmed" in order for the Award to be issued. QSL cards, as they are called, are the most used method of proving valid contacts to the League. At times, it takes over a year for a ham in a foriegn country to respond and get a QSL card back to the requesting ham. Add to that the cost of postage to send a card overseas, multiply times 100 and you can easily see how cost can become prohibitive; especially for teens and senior citizens on a fixed income. Most ham operators wisely use what are known as QSL Bureaus to get their cards from point A to point B. Things have been made somewhat easier by A.R.R.L.'s implementation of its LOGBOOK of THE WORLD. Still, it is not for the faint hearted because of the pressure one tends to put on one's self when such an endeavor is undertaken. Following that achievement is an even more difficult award and that is 5-BAND DXCC. One must supply proof of contact with at least 100 different countries on each of the 5 major amateur bands in order to qualify for this award and there is a nominal fee for the very nice plaque provided by the A.R.R.L. Even after that, one may chase DX with the goal in mind of confirming 100 countries strictly by using voice (SSB or AM), CW (International Morse Code), radio Teletype, and other modes of communications. There are over 360 individual entities in the world that qualify under the rules set forth by the American Radio Relay League to be called a country. Though states of the union, Hawaii and Alaska both qualify as separate countries due to their distance from the other contiguous US states. "Chasing" DX is a most rewarding and exciting endeavor. Friends are made that last a lifetime. King Hussien of Jordan was probably one of our most famous ham operators (Callsign:JY1) other than several members of Congress and the US Senate, notably the late Sen. Barry Goldwater of Arizona (K7UGA). The senator's station K7UGA, is still in operation as a Memorial Club Station in his honor with major operations being directed at providing communications for US military men and women abroad with their families back home. Also found in the ranks of ham radio operators are musicians like country music's Ronnie Milsap (WB4KCG).
Shown below are but just a few of the cards that have been received over the past years under my former callsign: KB4LA.
Argentina Aruba Austral Islands
Austria Barbados Central Canada
Colombia Czech Republic Eastern Canada
Kingdom of Jordan Reunion Island Spain
Italy South Africa Mexico
Cyprus Norway